Clarence Clemons

February 16, 1986|By Richard Defendorf of the Sentinel staff

(average) Clarence Clemons, HERO (Columbia BFC 40010): The Big Man calls HERO his first true solo effort, his power play to establish a musical identity -- other than that of ''Bruce Springsteen's sax player,'' of course. Accordingly, Clemons has unloaded the Red Bank Rockers, who backed him three years ago on Rescue (what most call his first solo effort), in favor of a large assortment of guest players and a coaching staff of music-industry dynamos.

Arthur Baker (producer of ''Sun City''), Michael Jonzun (Peter Wolf), Morrie Brown (the Manhattans) and multi-instrumentalist Narada Michael Walden (Aretha Franklin) all produced tracks. Walden and Jeffrey Cohen wrote most of the songs while spiritualist Sri Chinmoy showed Clemons the way to True Happiness and bestowed on him the name Mokshagun, which means ''liberation fire.'' With support like that, you'd expect this album to come awfully close to the Ultimate Experience.

Well, don't hold your karmic breath. There's some fun to be had, sure, but not much musical enlightenment. Clemons' rhythm 'n' blues sax playing is nicely showcased and his producers see to it that most songs here are pampered into a marketable variety of pop forms. But Clemons tends to croak and bellow instead of sing, and his principal songwriting contribution, ''It's Alright with Me Girl,'' doesn't show much polish. He relies on the sheer size of the talent behind him to smother any inadequacies.

Sometimes it works. The snappy ''You're a Friend of Mine,'' lightly dusted with Motown sparkle, puts Clemons' long, wailing sax lines to good use even though the duet vocals with Jackson Browne don't dazzle. Clemons plays and sings a duet with Darlene Love to fine effect on ''The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine Anymore,'' a 1966 Walker Brothers hit that Arthur Baker has garnished with a Phil Spector-like big sound and jingle-bell percussion. And Clemons' rap on ''Kissin' on U'' is as funny as it is musically satisfying.

But is Clemons a real solo artist yet? I still think of him as Springsteen's sideman.